Performance Art

Have been obsessively watching a video on MOMA's website. My tutor mentioned Marina Abromovich during an end of term lecture, so I sought to find out more about her. I have discovered she is a legendary performace artist and that last year, MOMA held a retrospective of her work, which included the re-performance of many of her iconic pieces, and a new piece, called The Artist is Present. Performance artists re-performed her work, but Marina herself took centre stage for TAIP. What is compelling about the video, for me, is that it illuminates the world of performance art. All the artists  introduce themselves, and explain what else they do, outside of this project. There are dancers, singers, choreographers, directors, writers, and actors. A bohemian, raggle taggle mix of freelance workers who are passionate about what they do and get by by hook or by crook. All of them have the 'presence' and stamina needed to perform the work. They talk about the experience of performing, including the discomfort sometimes endured, and how transforming it can prove to be. In her new performance, Marina sat opposite volunteers and stared into their eyes, 7 hours a day for 3 months. It caused a lot of debate in the media, and bought Performance Art back under the spotlight.

I would really recommend watching the video, here is the link: http://www.moma.org/explore/multimedia/videos/108